Products

History

Williams Controls Inc. was founded in 1937 by Norman C. Williams in Portland, Oregon, to manufacture vacuum water valves for cooling the brake drums of logging trucks and trailers. Over the years, the product range expanded and in 1962 Williams Controls introduced its first pneumatic throttle control system, which was designed to replace long, complex mechanical linkages. In the 1970s Norm Williams sold his interest in the company and it was taken public in 1989.

In the mid-'80s, the first electronically controlled diesel engines were introduced to meet requirements for increased efficiency and lower emissions. Williams Controls, working closely with both engine and vehicle manufacturers, designed the first electronic throttle control in 1987. The company quickly became a world leader in the design and manufacture of electronic throttle controls for trucks and buses, while establishing a significant position in off-highway markets.

As the business continued to flourish, in 2005 Williams Controls opened strategic sales and customer service centers in Munich, Germany, and Shanghai, China; as well as a 63,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Suzhou, China. A few years later, in 2011, a 20,000 square foot manufacturing facility was established in Pune, India.